Partial support is requested to host a fourth Conference on the Molecular Biology of Hearing and Deafness. The Conference will be held in Bethesda, MD in October, 2001. The specific aims of the Conference are to: 1) review progress in molecular biology related to hearing and deafness, by inviting scientists involved in significant recent research to present their results, and by soliciting free papers reporting research at the molecular level related to the auditory system; 2) facilitate interaction and collaboration between different laboratories engaged in molecular auditory research, and between basic scientists and clinicians with related interests in the molecular biology of deafness; 3) encourage research on the molecular biology of hearing and deafness, especially as integrated with other aspects of auditory system biology. This will include offering a tutorial on advanced molecular techniques immediately prior to the Conference; and 4) review recent developments in the broader field of molecular biology, and obtain an unbiased and critical appraisal of molecular biology research currently being performed in the auditory system by invited outside discussants. In order to foster the use of emerging molecular techniques, a workshop on advanced molecular biology methods will be offered to interested parties on the evening prior to the Conference. Topics include, but are not limited to, molecular genetics and gene mapping of inherited deafness; mutagenesis projects and screening for deafness genes; auditory tissue specific gene activity and expression profiling; molecular regulation of auditory development; the molecular substrates of auditory function; transgenic models in auditory function; molecular biology of temporal bone disease; molecular biology of hair cell damage, regeneration and protection; molecular medicine for the treatment of deafness; and ethics in the era of molecular medicine. Partial support is requested to defray travel costs of invited participants, and to permit a registration fee low enough to encourage participation by junior faculty, postdoctoral fellows and students.